Massacre of Arwal Essay

The massacre of Arwal is described by many as a post-independence Jallianwala Bagh, and justly so, in our opinion, say the two judges, while presenting a blow account of the felony committed by the State against the poor and landless in Arwal. The report on Arwal massacre was submitted by the Indian Peoples Human Right Tribunal which came into existence on January 10,1987. Two members of the Tribunal, Justic T. U. Mehta and Justice P. S. Potti inquired into the Arwal incident.

The y went to the place of the incident and made on the spot inquires, they heard and recorded evidence from eyewitnesses to the incident and from the persons who had gone there immediately after the killings, including journalists, politicians, lawyers and other public spirited persons. They held sitting in Patna, Delhi and Arwal where they invited the state government and its officials to come to depose before them and to cross examine those who appeared as witnesses before them.

The tribunal which began its work in January 1987, formally submitted its report on July30,1987. The report which is now available in print runs into 92 pages, and is a damning indictment of the Bihar Administration whose leaders and minios show up as a gang of criminals, liars, forgers and frauds, who have no respects for any of the decencies and norms of civilized life.

In any civilized society where justice prevails and the rule of law is practiced, all of them should have been serving life-terms. But in Bihar , where these dregs of society are in control of the state, they have succeeded in criminalizing the entire state establishment and in letting loose state violence against the poor and the downtrodden with a brazenness that has few parallels in history.

The firing in our opinion in our opinion amounted to brutal murder of 21 valuable citizens of this country governed by the constitution which proudly speaks of protecting the lives of the citizens of the country and aims at establishing an equitable order through equality, fraternity and brotherhood which are obviously not empty platitudes of a political theorist. It is very distressing to find that in spite of the demand of respectable citizens of this country , journalists and various public organizations not interested in politics. the Government of Bihar has remained adamant in not ordering any judicial inquiry.

It appears tha5t a one man commission which was non-judicial was ordered to enquire into matter, but even the report of that commission is kept secret by the government. Such obduracy of a government with regard to such a vital question of public importance is something which can not imagined in loudy proclaiming that we are striving for an egalitarian society and working for the poor and the oppressed with a view to bring their life up he desired standards.

The report should be made to reach the widest possible audience in the country and abroad. One copy may also be sent to the jury for awarding the Nobel peace Prize since the newspapers in India report that India’s Prime Minister has recommended by some faceless characters for Nobel Peace Prize. The report would provide a lot of material to write the citation on the peace of the graveyards that Rajiv Gandhi and his Government of criminals were imposing in Bihar.